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*** Official *** Tendulkar criticism thread

NasserFan207

International Vice-Captain
I don't think the fact that he hasn't scored a 250+ score matters much. Its incredibly rare that a team ever needs someone to score more than 200 or so. From what I recall the vast majority of 250+ scores happen in seemingly dead matches or when one side is massively ahead of the other. It shows amazing concentration and stamina obviously but I don't think its ever all that beneficial to a side.

Being able to reach 200 is all you really need.
 

Satguru

Banned
1. has looked a little dodgy with his technique ever since Gary Kirsten stopped giving him the throwdowns

2. has never had a run of form for 5 continuous years like some of the lesser batsmen had

3. doesn't have a 250 in tests, and with every passing match looks unlikelier to drag his test average towards 60

4. never took his bowling seriously

5. is not the ideal batsman in the 4th innings chases outside SC

6. had a mental block against McGrath in the 90s, so didn't do against McGrath as good as he should have in that time - poked at seemingly harmless deliveries outside off-stump too often against him (the same deliveries IMO that he left so easily against other bowlers)

7. isn't as good in defense as Gavaskar or Boycott as a whole, in spite of possessing as good defensive technique as the two IMO

8. isn't as good in offense as Lara or Sobers as a whole (considering test matches alone), in spite of possessing as good offensive technique as the two IMO
Definitely disagree with that... SRT was on top of the world from around 1996-2002... IIRC he averaged 60+ every year from 97 to 2001
 

weldone

Hall of Fame Member
I'm assuming that post has some heavy sarcasm going on but some of it does hit close to home.
I don't think the fact that he hasn't scored a 250+ score matters much. Its incredibly rare that a team ever needs someone to score more than 200 or so. From what I recall the vast majority of 250+ scores happen in seemingly dead matches or when one side is massively ahead of the other. It shows amazing concentration and stamina obviously but I don't think its ever all that beneficial to a side.

Being able to reach 200 is all you really need.
When I wrote the post I didn't know myself whether I was being sarcastic or I was just touching upon my wet dreams about my favorite batsman which he hasn't been able to achieve - probably a mixture of both.
 

Arachnodouche

International Captain
I think the point about him being less compact in match situations than Gavaskar or Boycott is true though only to be expected. He's been a far more naturally attacking bat than either so he's fallen to the odd ill-advised stroke of flamboyance over the years quite regularly.
 

NUFAN

Y no Afghanistan flag
Tendulkar's highest ever ICC Test batting ranking is 898 achieved against lowly Zimbabwe in 2002. That places him in 26th place all time and behind the following contemporaries:

=3 Ricky Ponting 942
=6 Kumar Sangakkara 938
=10 Jacques Kallis 935
=10 Matthew Hayden 935
12 Mohammed Yousuf 933
=17 Michael Hussey 921
23 Brian Lara 911
24 Kevin Pietersen 909
25 Shivnarine Chanderpaul 901
---------------------------------------------
26 Sachin Tendulkar 898

No one else inside the top 100 has achieved their peak ranking against a country with under 10 wins.
 

weldone

Hall of Fame Member
I think the point about him being less compact in match situations than Gavaskar or Boycott is true though only to be expected. He's been a far more naturally attacking bat than either so he's fallen to the odd ill-advised stroke of flamboyance over the years quite regularly.
When the so-called experts say that he is a naturally attacking batsman and therefore he should always play positively is what irritates me the most. I personally think that he is quite equipped to play both the Gavaskar-type game, or the Lara-type. According to the match situation (depending on whether we are playing to win, or playing to save) he should choose his game. The so-called experts want him to always play a game that is in between the Gavaskar-type and the Lara-type - opining that is what his natural game is. I personally disagree with them.
 

honestbharani

Whatever it takes!!!
When the so-called experts say that he is a naturally attacking batsman and therefore he should always play positively is what irritates me the most. I personally think that he is quite equipped to play both the Gavaskar-type game, or the Lara-type. According to the match situation (depending on whether we are playing to win, or playing to save) he should choose his game. The so-called experts want him to always play a game that is in between the Gavaskar-type and the Lara-type - opining that is what his natural game is. I personally disagree with them.
I think it is pretty obvious he is mostly a compact test batsman with the very odd attacking knock thrown in... While he is no Dravid, he is no Lara or Ponting either in that respect. He falls somewhere in the middle..
 

weldone

Hall of Fame Member
I think it is pretty obvious he is mostly a compact test batsman with the very odd attacking knock thrown in... While he is no Dravid, he is no Lara or Ponting either in that respect. He falls somewhere in the middle..
I was just talking about what he is/was capable of. I personally think that he is certainly capable of playing both the Dravid game and the Lara game if he wants to.

Just expanding on my point: there are 2 types of batsmen who strike around 55 in test cricket. One, who always strike at around 50-60 in general. And two, who sometimes strike at around 40 and sometimes at around 70 thereby achieving an overall strike rate of 55. Tendulkar is/was capable of being a batsman of the 2nd kind IMO.

...the thing he has done so successfully in ODIs...has shifted gears at will throughout his career...
 

Arachnodouche

International Captain
..except when he nears those hundreds. Funny quirk for a guy who's scored so many of them.

I think he's been the epitome of Test match batsmanship for the two odd years before this past one. Immaculately controlled almost to the point of passing under the radar somewhat yet capable of unfurling some awe inspiring strokes from time to time. Mind, that is in no way an endorsement of him choosing his ODIs as and when the whim strikes, but that's not the issue here.
 

honestbharani

Whatever it takes!!!
I was just talking about what he is/was capable of. I personally think that he is certainly capable of playing both the Dravid game and the Lara game if he wants to.

Just expanding on my point: there are 2 types of batsmen who strike around 55 in test cricket. One, who always strike at around 50-60 in general. And two, who sometimes strike at around 40 and sometimes at around 70 thereby achieving an overall strike rate of 55. Tendulkar is/was capable of being a batsman of the 2nd kind IMO.

...the thing he has done so successfully in ODIs...has shifted gears at will throughout his career...
And the batsmen who actually strike at 70 have had the ability to strike at 50-60 (Tendulkar SR) at times and at 80-90 (Sehwag-Jayasuriya like SR) at times... Frankly, I don't think there is any batsman who always stuck at the same SR. Rahul has had the ability to shift between striking at 30-40 and 60-70 and hence has a career SR around 40..


Basically, I think every batsman has the ability to play innings 10-15 above/below their SR.. And FTR, I don't think Sachin has ever played an innings to sustain 70+ SRs like Lara/Ponting have done. That is just their game and this is his. Not that there is anything wrong with it.
 
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OhhhhMattyMatty

Cricket Spectator
His bouncy pads and poor umpiring have saved him against spinners numerous times. He is actually not that strong against decent spin and has relied on just pressing forward with bat and pad together for 20 years. He's the sole reason the BCCI won't take on UDRS!
 

weldone

Hall of Fame Member
And the batsmen who actually strike at 70 have had the ability to strike at 50-60 (Tendulkar SR) at times and at 80-90 (Sehwag-Jayasuriya like SR) at times... Frankly, I don't think there is any batsman who always stuck at the same SR. Rahul has had the ability to shift between striking at 30-40 and 60-70 and hence has a career SR around 40..


Basically, I think every batsman has the ability to play innings 10-15 above/below their SR.. And FTR, I don't think Sachin has ever played an innings to sustain 70+ SRs like Lara/Ponting have done. That is just their game and this is his. Not that there is anything wrong with it.
O God! I was talking about what I 'personally' think Tendulkar is capable of, and hasn't done in his career with much consistency...not about what he has done regularly. This is supposed to be a Tendulkar 'criticism' thread ffs!
 

weldone

Hall of Fame Member
lol.. it wasn't criticism..
Mine was, you probably didn't get my point.

My whole point was that Tendulkar doesn't adjust his mode of play according to the situation in test matches as much as he does in ODIs - which I personally think he is quite capable of doing in test matches too.

I would 'personally' like him to change his game depending on whether we are playing to save or we are playing to win. When we are playing to save he should play in the Gavaskar-mode, and when we are playing to win he should play in the Lara-mode. Career SRs don't matter to me much, playing the right game at the right time does. I wouldn't be happier personally if his career SR moves from 55 to 65. Rather I shall be happier to see him play like Lara or Richards when we are in commanding position in the 3rd day of a test, and to see him play like Gavaskar when we are in a **** position in the 5th day of a test, for example. The key point being that I 'personally' think that he is one of the very very few batsmen to have ever come to be capable of that.
 

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